


dandelions and delphinium (curling ‘round our hands)

by nonbinarywithaknife (littleboxes)



Series: me sobbing about critical role [47]
Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Abandonment Issues, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Disaster Lesbian Beau, F/F, Fluff, Fluffy Ending, Gen, Homesickness, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Romantic Fluff, Romantic Soulmates, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, commitment issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-16
Updated: 2019-03-16
Packaged: 2019-11-19 12:40:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,399
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18135878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littleboxes/pseuds/nonbinarywithaknife
Summary: beau and jester are soulmates





	dandelions and delphinium (curling ‘round our hands)

**Author's Note:**

> finally! my two favorite bloos. entirely from beau's perspective

Beau is fourteen when the purple-indigo flower appears on her ankle. She’s running from an older student that’d been annoyed by her attitude, when she trips over a fallen branch, and tumbles into a ravine. She’s sitting up, soaked in mud and covered in newly emerging bruises, when she feels a warm sensation on her left ankle. She tears away her pants, and sure enough, a beautiful blue flower is winding its way up her leg. She stays sitting the ravine, staring at the mark, for an hour, before she realizes that she needs to get home or she’ll be in _huge_ trouble.

She decides, as she stands on the doorstep of the house she lives in (not her home. It’s _never_ been home, and it never will be) that she’s not going to tell her parents about her mark. She won’t tell any of her “friends” either. She wants- she wants it to be _hers_ , not something her parents can pick apart and criticize, not something for the assholes she hangs out with to mock, she wants something for _her_ , and only her.

And so she doesn’t. For all the years she spends in Kamordah, not a single soul learns about her mark, with the exception of one of the cleaning ladies, Martha. But Martha never says a word to her parents about it, and so Beau leaves a few gold pieces in the servants’ quarters. When she’s shipped off to the Cobalt Soul, there’s no one there that learns about her mark, either, until Dairon. After all, most of the monks know how unpleasant, how abrasive Beau is- it’s not a surprise she’s absent a mark. But, one day during training with Dairon, when Beau is getting beaten to a pulp, Dairon’s vest slips, and Beau can see a faded, wilting flower on her shoulder. It’s not enough time to see what species, but Dairon notices Beau’s freeze immediately.

“Is your soulmate _dead_?” Beau asks, the words escaping her mouth before her brain can catch up. Even for her, that was intrusive and blunt, and so Beau awaits the inevitable yelling and storming out. After all, Dairon’s already tolerated her a lot longer than most have, and there’s no reason to stay after this.

But Dairon doesn’t leave. Instead, she pauses, standing straight, out of the ready stance she’d been in. Her shoulders are tense, and it’s clear that it’s a sensitive subject.

“I applaud your curiosity, Beauregard. No, my soulmate is not dead. And yes, that is all I will say on the subject. Now, loosen your shoulders, your throw is sloppy.”

And that’s that. Dairon doesn’t leave, doesn’t abandon her, and after the training, as Dairon is unwrapping her bandages, Beau turns to her, and says in an awkward rush, “I actually do have a soulmate. I just. Never told anyone,” and shows her bare ankle to Dairon. The dark skinned elf looks at Beau, at the delphinium on her ankle, and an eyebrow rises slightly. “You kept it a secret,” she says, and Beau is ready to defend herself, her choice, but is interrupted.

“Good. Never give people more information than they require.”

* * *

 

Beau is traveling with a half orc named Fjord and a tiefling named Jester, and- she thinks this is the happiest she’s ever been. She doesn’t tell them, of course, can barely admit it to herself, but- maybe. Maybe it is. And then she meets the rest of the Nein; an insufferable circus asshole, a hot woman who could break her in half, a wizard that reminds her of the rare, good parts of the Reserve, and who is also a bit of an asshole, and a goblin with sharp eyes and an even sharper crossbow.

At first, they’re strangers. Then allies. _Friends_ . They’re all in a bathhouse together, when Jester shows off her soulmark. It’s a dandelion, sprawled across her ribs, and Beau’s breath catches when she realizes that it’s _her_ dandelion, the same on that resides on her hip, and she has to dunk herself underwater to keep from following Caleb and Nott in their rushed exit. The soothing blankness from the water calms her rushing mind, and then she resurfaces. She manages to make her way through the day, although her eyes constantly find themselves drawn to Jester’s ribs, as if she could make out the flower through her corset.

They’re in their room, and the sun has just set, and she still can’t get the fuckking mark out of her head. She and Jester; _soulmates_ . Beau’s self aware enough to admit she has a bit of a crush on Jester, but it’s hard to be around the joyful tiefling and _not_ have a bit of a crush on her. But- _soulmates_ ? That’s- that’s a commitment, that’s literally the _longest term_ commitment, and Beau is also self aware enough to realize that she has a lot of commitment issues.

The constant circular thinking keeps her up, and so when she hears Jester roll out of bed, she tenses. She opens one eye and watches as the tiefling walks over to their one window, and sighs, softly. And- dammit, Beau sees the upset look on her face, and she can’t leave things alone, so she gets up and pads over.

Jester doesn’t notice her until Beau’s hand settles on her shoulder. She jumps, and whirls around, but exhales when she realizes it’s just Beau. “Oh! Beau! You scared me, what’s wrong, did you have a nightmare?”

Beau blinks at the sudden change of demeanor, but doesn’t let it faze her for long. “Oh, ah, nothing, I haven’t really been able to sleep. But- uh, you looked kinda, upset? Are you alright?”

At first, Jester looks like she might deny it, put up a smile, but then she sighs, and settles back in near the window, with her arms wrapped around her. “Um, well. It’s kinda stupid, but- I just, I miss my Mama, and my home, y’know? And it’s like, technically, I _wanted_ to leave, you know, go out and explore the world, but now that I can’t actually go back, I miss her so _much_ ,” Jester says, and, oh no, her eyes are a little misty.

Beau sits down next to her, and stiffly reaches an arm around her shoulder. “Ah, hey, now, it’s alright. Um, uh, maybe if you talk about it, you’ll feel better? Is there something in particular you miss?”

“Oh, well, there is- my Mama would tell me these stories, you know, about how she and my Dad met, about how it was so romantic, when she found out they were soulmates, and it was so perfect, and I’d also ask her to tell the story again because I just loved it so much, you know? And stuff like that, I just miss it.”

Beau’s breath catches when Jester mentions soulmates.

“And, I would always think about _my_ soulmate, and how romantic it’s going to be when we meet, especially now that I’m an adventurer! Like, what if I _save_ them, you know, and I’m like, hugging them or something, and I’m covered in blood from a battle, but not too much, because that would be gross, and we’d look each other in the eye and just _know_ , and then we’d kiss and it would be _so romantic!_ ”

Beau doesn’t realize _how_ stiff she’s gotten until Jester looks at her, worry in her eyes. “Beau? Are you alright? Are you cold, or something?”

Beau is acutely aware that her ankle is bare, given that she doesn’t wear her boots to bed, and Jester’s hand is _right_ in front of her, and-

Beau brings her hands up to her shirt, and pulls it up, to show Jester her mark. “Uh, surprise?” is all she can get out, her eyes closed so she doesn’t have to watch the disappointment roll down Jester’s face.

But, instead of the negative reaction she’d been expecting, Beau gets a shocked gasp and then a crushing hug. “Beau!? You’re my soulmate! Holy _shit!_ ”

Jester lets her go after a few seconds. She’s smiling mischievously, purple eyes twinkling. “You know, you _are_ very pretty, and your muscles are _very_ impressive. Can I kiss you now?”

“Uhh, _yeah_ , I mean, yes, I-,” Beau’s verbal stumbling is cut off by a very enthusiastic tiefling, and they stay by the window until the moon sets.

 

**Author's Note:**

> makeouts by moonlight, best way to solve homesickness, Tiefling Approved


End file.
